Sunny day... Sunflower day...

I don't know about you, but I always liked sunflowers. Even though we rarely had an opportunity to see them far north, in the area where I spent my childhood.

We, mostly, were enjoying not sunflowers themselves, but sunflower seeds ;) But still, walking in the countryside, we've seen them here and there and always stopped to look at the flower we can call "exotic" ;)

 

And even now these bright big yellow crowns make me stop and admire. There are a couple of small sunflower gardens nearby, and I always like to slow down while walking and take a picture or two... Let's make this post a one flower show again. Shouldn't we? Cuz this plant is quite special.

First, this is not a "sunflower", by the way, but a Prairie Sunflower. These are not as big and have fewer seeds. But it doesn't make it less beautiful.

When the flower is still in the buds, those are bold and tough looking. Once the petals are unwrapped free, they are dominated in the area and attract a lot of bees, beetles and other creatures (also even birds' attention). But even when the petals are going off, the central piece still looks amazing. 

And... didn't you know the sun-flower always facing the sun (okey, almost always) turning around, starting the day facing East and turning 180 degrees by end of the day, so the flower can follow the sun and take most of the energy and light... Maybe this is the reason why the seeds are so tasty and remind us about summer when we are enjoying them during long and cold winter evenings?

 

And, by the way, how do you like this Goldfinch, feeding on the flower? I love it and wish I had a better lens to capture this small but beautiful bird...

Pictures were taken on August 02, 2020.